The boils are caused by an infection of the hair follicle by the bacteria staphlococcus aureus, which can survive outside the body.

''Because the offending bacteria is present throughout our area, all of us are at risk for these type of skin infections when we get cuts or scrapes,'' said Dr. Daniel Berliner of Bethel.

The offending bug appears to be building resistance to antibiotics, health officials say.

''Something about this germ is either making it spread better, invade better once it spreads or producing a more severe disease once it invades,'' says J.R. Krevans, a physician and researcher in Bethel.

Typically, he said, well over 90 percent of the infecting bacteria are destroyed by common antibiotics, but in some villages 90 percent of infected people have resistant strains.

Steam baths, popular among Delta residents, are suspected as a major spot for the bacteria to spread, Berliner said, since the warm, wet wood in a steam bath is an idea place for the bacteria to grow.